Segment Wealth Management LLC Reduces Position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Segment Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,681 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 34 shares during the period. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $2,288,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 6,207 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,499,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the period. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,590 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,251,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. increased its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 55,390 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $22,306,000 after buying an additional 1,130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,357 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.96% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX opened at $422.00 on Tuesday. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a one year low of $377.85 and a one year high of $519.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $440.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $466.06. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.61 by $0.77. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 1.91% and a negative net margin of 4.52%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -1.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on VRTX. HC Wainwright cut their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $600.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $566.00 to $520.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $473.00 to $476.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $503.00 to $500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a report on Friday, December 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $490.38.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Profile

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.